TV's 'Extra' to showcase story of McCurley family

Published: Thursday, October 15, 1998

The Harry and Nicki McCurley family is scheduled to be featured in a segment of the nationally televised "Extra" at 11 p.m. Sunday. The show is carried on NBC affiliate KCBD-TV Channel 11 (Cox Cable Channel 9).

Nicki McCurley said most of the show was taped in the McCurley home, and that it involved Christopher McCurley, 6, and his bone marrow donor Emanuel Rossey.

Christopher received the bone marrow transplant as a means of curing Wiskott Aldrich syndrome, a rare genetic disorder that leads to recurrent infections.

Christopher's brother, Derek, died in February of the same disease.

Nicki McCurley said the taping session was their first meeting with Rossey.

"He is only 23. He is Puerto Rican, Portuguese and Italian mixed, and yet he still matched Christopher - I couldn't believe it," she said.

The McCurley family had been scheduled to appear on the Rosie O'Donnell show in a meeting with Rossey.

However, that appointment was postponed by the show because it only deals with a given topic once a month, they were told.